Scripture
19 Lamech took two wives: the name of the first one was Adah, and the name of the second one was Zillah. 20 Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock. 21 His brother’s name was Jubal, who was the father of all who handle the harp and pipe. 22 Zillah also gave birth to Tubal Cain, the forger of every cutting instrument of brass and iron. Tubal Cain’s sister was Naamah.
Audio Commentary
Abstract
Lamech, a descendant of Cain, is the first polygamist recorded in Scripture — a fitting first transgression of God’s design for marriage from Cain’s degenerate line. The commentary observes that God’s grace still reached him: despite his unrepentant sin, he was blessed with prominent children — Jabal a great herdsman, Jubal a founder of music whose name carries a thematic tie to the jubilee, and Tubal-cain a forger of instruments — and reads their prosperity as common grace held over the righteous and the wicked alike, neither deserving it more than the other. The unifying observation is that all three sons’ industries were centered on a world without God: useful trades, desirable even to the faithless, yet the family became expert in the present things of this world while understanding nothing of the glory, fear, or service of God — a warning the commentary presses on Christians today.
Brief Observations
- The first polygamist — Lamech is the first polygamist recorded in Scripture, and the commentary finds it fitting that Cain’s degenerate line would be first to transgress God’s law of marriage.
- Blessed despite his sin — Despite this unrepentant sin, God still blessed Lamech with children who were prominent people of their generation.
- Jabal, father of herdsmen — His son Jabal, by his wife Adah, was a great herdsman — either patriarch of a family of herdsmen or so famed that later herdsmen called him father.
- Jubal and the roots of music — His son Jubal made contributions to music so significant that the celebration of jubilee carries a thematic, etymological tie to his name, the jubilee-trumpet being the instrument that announced liberation and redemption.
- Common grace to all — The commentary makes peace with the wicked prospering by pointing to common grace, which God holds over the righteous and the wicked alike — neither deserving it more than the other.
- Tubal-cain the forger — Tubal-cain, by Lamech’s wife Zillah, forged instruments, and Zillah also bore a daughter, Naamah.
- Trades for a godless world — The industries of all three sons were centered on a world without God — trades not useless to the faithful, but useful and desirable to the faithless as well.
- Expert in earth, blind to God — Cain’s family became experts in the present things of this world while understanding nothing of the glory of God, the fear of God, or how to honor and serve Him — a point the commentary presses on Christians to remember.
Full Commentary
Lamech is the first polygamist we see in holy scripture. It makes sense that Cain’s degenerate descendants would be the first to transgress God’s law concerning marriage. God’s original command for marriage, issues even before the Fall of Man, was that one man and one woman should join together and become one flesh. What’s interesting about Lamech’s sin is that it created a custom which would later ensnare men of greater character than himself. Lamech wasn’t honoring tradition when he took two wives. He just wanted two wives. Some of the later biblical characters like Jacob, David, Solomon, and others took multiple wives because they unwittingly obliged a human tradition rather than submitting to the commandment of God. Sin is dangerous. Lamech didn’t realize his sin of polygamy would establish a human custom which stretched across generations and destroyed countless marriages.
Despite Lamech’s unrepentant sin of marrying two wives, our gracious God still blessed him with children. Lamech’s children also seem to be prominent people of their generation. They weren’t made famous for their piety, indeed they were probably just as godless as Lamech and their ancestor Cain. Their godlessness didn’t detract from their ingenuity and it appears they became men serviceable to the world itself. They were inventors and innovators of useful disciplines.
Lamech’s son Jabal, whom he had to his wife Adah, was a great herdsman of this time. He was either the patriarch of a family of herdsmen or he was so famous at the task that other herdsmen of the generations after him called him father. Considering the context of his brothers, I think it’s safe to assume Jabal was famous among herdsmen and his life brought innovation to the craft. Lamech’s other son Jubal, also had by his wife Adah, became an accomplished musician. He was called the father of all those who play the lyre and pipe.
Jubal’s life brought such significant contributions to the art of music that the famous musical celebration called the jubilee was titled with a thematic etymological relationship to Jubal’s own name. The jubilee-trumpet was the instrument used to pronounce liberation and redemption of those who were enslaved. So Jabal’s contributions made his family rich, and Jubal’s contributions made his family merry. Wealth and merrymaking are almost always found together even among the unrepentant. In Job’s story, Job contends with his friends by reminding them that the wicked do in fact prosper in this world. Listen to what Job says in Job 21:7-16:
Job 21:7-16 7 “Why do the wicked still live, Continue on, also become very powerful? 8 “Their descendants are established with them in their sight, And their offspring before their eyes, 9 Their houses are safe from fear, And the rod of God is not on them. 10 “His ox mates without fail; His cow calves and does not abort. 11 “They send forth their little ones like the flock, And their children skip about. 12 “They sing to the timbrel and harp And rejoice at the sound of the flute. 13 “They spend their days in prosperity, And suddenly they go down to Sheol. 14 “They say to God, ‘Depart from us! We do not even desire the knowledge of Your ways. 15 ‘Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him, And what would we gain if we entreat Him?’ 16 “Behold, their prosperity is not in their hand; The counsel of the wicked is far from me.
In the final analysis we might make peace with the wicked prospering by understanding God holds common grace over the righteous and the wicked alike. Neither of them deserve His grace any more than the other. The world-system is also structured in opposition to God, so it’s no wonder the wicked find corrupt hierarchies to ascend by unrighteous means. Again this just reminds us that we can’t rely on outward success as a metric to determine whether an individual or whether entire families are blessed by God. Lamech’s family was not, and yet they were responsible for major artistic and scientific breakthroughs.
Tubal-cain was another one of Lamech’s sons and this son he had by his wife Zillah. She also gave birth to a daughter named Naamah. Tubal-cain grew into a famous blacksmith. He advanced the craft of smithing bronze and iron. These products would have been used both for animal husbandry and also for war. Some readers point out how the descendant of the first murderer became the preeminent artificer of war. Cain committed the first homicide and Tubal-cain innovated the processes of weaponizing entire nations.
You’ll notice how the industries of all three of Lamech’s sons were centered on a world without God. It’s not as if these trades are useless to faithful people, but that these trades are still useful and desirable to those who have no faith. None of Lamech’s sons became great priests or great teachers of the knowledge of God. If your mind, and consequently most of your time, is dominated by these kinds of worldly commodities then you should evaluate the condition of your relationship with God. We mentioned earlier how maybe Cain and his descendants were first to the finish line in the development of these commodities because these commodities are what captured their devotion. But what good are the things of this world if you lose your own soul? Jesus poses this same question In Matthew 16:24-28 where we read:
Matthew 16:24-28 24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. 25 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 27 “For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS. 28 “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”
Cain’s family became experts of the present things of this world, but none of them understood the glory of God, the fear of God, or how to honor and serve Him with their lives. This is something Christians must remember today. Faithless people who are destitute of God’s knowledge and grace may still be gifted by Him and given the talents necessary for becoming well-accomplished in the world. God doesn’t shy away from giving common gifts and even great power to evil men. This is in part because God often chooses the foolish things of this world to enact His miracles and His redemption so that He may be glorified through them. The Apostles of Christ, with the exception of Paul, Matthew, and Luke, were not educated men. They were tradesmen. No one expected them to be great expositors of the gospel, and therefore those who witnessed them teach were more inclined to glorify God because of it. God also is not afraid nor hesitant to gift great talents to evil men because He knows regardless of how powerful they may become among other men, not a single one of them escapes His divine, omnipotent sovereignty.